Handle for paperboard containers and the like



Sept. 24, 1957 R. E. VAN ROSEN HANDLE FOR- PAPERBOARD CONTAINERS AND THE LIKE Filed April 27,, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Aaszer 5 KW Aasf/v Sept; 24, 1957 r R. E. VAN ROSEN 2,807,407

HANDLE FOR PAPERBOARD CONTAINERS AND THE LIKE Filed April 27, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Tia. 4-.

uvmvroxf @sZ/er 5 MM Aasf/v I Vim 4M Arron/7 Sept. 24, 1957 R. E. VAN ROSEN HANDLE FOR PAPERBOARD CONTAINERS AND THE LIKE Filed April 27, 1955 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR. 05557 5 V/l/v/Pasf/v BY 5:

Sept. 24, 1957 HANDLE FOR PAPERBOARD CONTAINERS .AND THE LIKE Filed April 27, 1955 R. VAN ROSEN 4 sheets sheet 4 v INVENTORY; Kaamrf M/n Pas/v BY I I v Arrow H 2,807,407 Patented Sept. 24, 19 57 HANDLE FOR PAPERBOARD CONTAINERS AND THE LIKE Robert E. Van Rosen, New York, N. Y. Application April 27, 1955, Serial No. 504,271 1 Claim. (Cl. 229-52 This invention relates to handles to be applied to containers of various kinds and sizes, and particularly to handles adapted for use with paperboard or fibre boxes which are provided with specially shaped slots or apertures through which part of the' handle may project to engage the box.

The slots may be in two overlapping parts of the box so that the parts and slots register when the box is closed. The handle may then be inserted through the registered slots. Such a handle may be constructed, in accordance with one feature of the invention to act as a locking device, holding the box closed and thus eliminating' use of glue-tape, or other conventional fastening means.

The handle may be cut or formed from a single piece of material which may be scored or otherwise marked to aid in folding the handle to put it in final form for use.

The handle cannot be used without the specially shaped slots and containers having such slots are an important part of this invention. Both the handles and the com tainers may assume different shapes and proportions, the only necessary structures being the locking devices of the handle and the special contours of the slots.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved handle which is readily attachable to a separately manufactured container. Another object is to provide an improved container suitable for cooperation with such a handle.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved handles and containers of the type described which are suitable for manufacture from paperboard.

A further object of the invention is to provide improved handles and containers ofthe type described in which the stresses due to the load in the container are distributed over substantial areas of the material. A further object is to construct the handle and container :so that localized shear stresses are avoided.

A further object is to provide a handle and container :of the type described, in which the handle serves as 'a lock to hold the container closed.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention are attained, in the container and handle structures described herein, by providing the container with one or more :slots, each slot having a wide portion and an adjacent :narrow portion, and by forming the handle with a leg which fits within the wide portion of the slot and a folded panel on the end of the leg which also fits within the wide portion of the slot, but which has narrow neck portion ffitting within the narrow portion of the slot. When the panel is folded back against the leg and the folded end inserted through the wide portion of theslot, the resilience of the material causes the narrow neck of the panel to spring into the narrow portion of the slot, so that a shoulder or shoulders adjacent the neck portion engages the adjacent inner surface of thecontainer. The con- "tainer may then be lifted by the handle with the weight. of the container resting onthe shoulders; It is desirable to provide the panel at the end of the handle with. an end tab wider than the neck portion and wider than the narrow portion of the slot, which end'tab is elfective to limit the movement of the handle inwardly of the container.

In one modification of the invention described herein, two opposed slots are provided along the opposite edges of one wall of the container, the two slots having a broad T-shape with the stems of the Ts extending toward each other. The handle for that modification comprises a single strip of paperboard bent in the form of a U, with two legs and panels which look in their respective slots. According to a further modification, the tab ends of .the panel may be provided with cooperating locking means to hold the sides of the handle together. When such locking means is used with the handle on the openable side of a hinged container, the lockingmeans is effectiveto hold the container closed. v I V In another modification of the invention, the slots are cross-shaped, instead of T-shaped, and the handle is of the.

well known luggage type, having two legs on each end of the handle, each pair of legs being inserted in one of the slots.

According to another modification of the invention, a paperboard closure is, fastened to the end of a bag of more flexible material, the handle being thereafter applied to the paperboard closure.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following description, taken together with the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings: Fig. l is a perspective drawing of a complete box provided with special slots and a handle in accordance, with r the present invention;

Fig. 1a is a plan view of a blank forvforming the handle of Fig. 1;. h

Fig. 2 is a perspective viewof the box of Fig. 1 partially open to show more clearly the shape and relative positions of the slots and cutouts;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on the line IIIIII of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of avmodified form of box and handle embodying the invention including a novel box-locking feature;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on the line VV of Fig. 4; v

Fig. 6 is a plan view of a blank for forming the handle of Figs. 4 and 5;

Fig. 7 is a perspective fragmentary view of a modified form of hinged cover retail box and'handle embodying the invention;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line VIIIVIII of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a perspective View of the handle of Fig. 7 folded and ready for insertion; Q

Fig. 9a is a plan view, on a reduced'scale, of a blank for making the handle of Fig. 7;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary plan view showing the shape of slot used in Fig. 7;

embodying the invention; j y I Fig. 12 shows a perspective view of a shoebag formed from the blank of Fig. 11, ready for closing;

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary perspective View of. the shoebag of Fig. 12, with the top folded and closed; and. a Fig. 14 is a perspective view of the shoebag withthe handle inserted.

Figs. 1 t03 h w These figures illustrate a paperboard container v.15 of a type known in the art as.a hinged cover retail box, having a handle 20 constructed in accordance withrthe present invention.

As shown in Fig. 2, the container has two walls 15a and 15b which overlap each other in a registering relationship when the box is closed. Two opposed slots 16 and 17 are provided in the walls 15a-and 15b, preferably at themiddle of the longer edges of those walls. The slots 16 ,and 17 are generally T-shaped, with the crossbars of the Ts adjacent the respective edges of the box wall, and with the stems of the Ts extending toward one another. The cross-bars of the T-shaped slots are hereinafter referred toas the wide portions of the slots and the stemportions are hereinafter: referred to as thc'narrowportionsa The slots l6 are formed by cutouts in the edges of the blank from which the container 15 is constructed. 7 The slots 17; on the-other hand, are formed by slits in the box walls 15a and 15b. Both ends of these slits terminate at foldscores 18 which define the corners of the box, and the scores 18 are interrupted between the ends of the slits, so that when the box is folded there is provided along each upper edge an inverted T-shaped projection.

When the box is closed, the slot 16 in the wall 15a movesinto registry with the slot 17 in wall 15b, and the slot 17 in wall 150 moves into registry with the slot 16 in wall 15b.

Thehandle 20 .is formed from a blank shown in Fig. 1a and consisting of a single die cut or stamped material, preferably paperboard, in which .the grain runs the long way, i. e.,*fror n top to bottom as the blank is shown in Fig. la. The central portion of the blank 20 is provided with a plurality of parallel fold scores 21 to facilitate bending of that central portion so that the handle as sumes a, U-shaped configuration having two legs 24, as seen in Figs. 1 to 3. Each leg 24 is narrower than the wide portion of the slot and wider than the narrow portion. Two additional transverse fold scores 22 are provided,.somewhat nearer the ends of the handle-forming strip than the fold scores 21. These fold scores 22 define panels 23 between them and the ends of the strip 20. The strip 20 is bent backwardly along the scores 22, so that when .the handle 20 is turned with its legs 24 downwardly, as shown for example in Fig. 2, then the panels 23 extendupwardly. The opposite sides of the panels 23 are provided with notches 23a.defining between them a neck 23b and shoulders 23c atthe sides of the notches 23a toward the fold scores 22. Beyond the notches 23a, the panel 23widens out again to form a tab 25.

After the handle is folded along the central scores 21 to form it in a general U-shaped configuration and along the fold scores 22 to turn the panels 23 backwardly along the legs 24, then. the folds 22 between the legs 24 and panels 23 are inserted through the wide portions of the registering slots 16v and 17-, and the legs24 of the handle 20 are pushed downwardly. Aseach leg 24 moves down wardly, the neck 23b comes opposite the narrowportion of the associated slot. Since the neck is narrower than the narrow slot portions, the natural resilience of the freshly folded paperboard tends to 'spn'ng the upper ends of the panels 23 from their associated legs, moving the necks 23b into the narrow' portions of the slots. The tabs 25 are then effective to prevent further downward movement of the, legs 24 into the container. Upon lifting the handle 20, the shoulders 23c engage the inner side of the wall 15b and support the weight of the container.

It should be noted that the weight of the container is supported on the full width of the shoulders 23c and is transmitted through them and the panel 23 to the fold 22 where itpasses the full width of thehandle strip 20 to the leg 24and thence upwardly to the central U-shaped portion ofthe handle. The shoulders 23c and panels 23 are stressed in compression, the load being limited by the buckling strength of the material. The legs 24 are stressed in tension. Theonly part of the handle which is stressed in shear is at the folds 22. The stress is there distributed along the full length of the folds and the concentration of material at the folds aids in resisting that stress. Furthermore, the legs 24 at and adjacent that location are backed up by the outer walls of the container and by the T-shaped projections 19, so that any tendency of the panels 23 or of the lower ends of legs 24 to deform outwardly under the stress of the load is thereby resisted. The gravitational pull of container and its contents is counteracted by the two triangles of forces formed on either side of the container, the only limitations being the inherent tensile and buckling strength of the materials of which both the handle and the container are manufactured.

The load of the container on the panels 23 tends to move their upper ends inwardly of the container, rather than outwardly, and thereby prevents any movement of the panels in a direction which would release theshoulders into the wide portions of the slots so that the handle might pullout.

The box 15 may be held closed by means of glue tape strips 26 (see Fig. 1). Alternatively, it may be closed by stitching, stapling, tying or in any other suitable manner.

Figs. 4 to 6 In these figures, a box 15 which is structurally the same as the box 15 of Figs. 1 to 3 is provided with a handle 27 which differs from the handle 20 of Figs. 1 to 3 only in the structureof the tabs 28 provided at its ends. The handle 27, like the handle 20, is formed from a single strip of paperboard or similar material. There is provided on the handle blank 27 at the outer ends of the notches 23c another set of fold scores 29, so that the tabs 28 may be readily bent over toward one another after the handle is inserted in the box. The tabs 28 are provided with any conventional locking means, such as the Arthur locks 30. v

After the handle 27 is assembled with the container 15, the tabs 20 are bent toward one another and the Arthur lock slits 30 are engaged. The locking tabs 28 then hold the two legs of the handle 27 together and hold the two overlapping walls of the box against separation, thereby locking the box closed.

Figs. 7 to 10 The container 31 of these figures is similar to the container 15 of the previous figures, except that the handle is applied to the hinge wall 31a of the container rather than to the overlapping walls at the openable side of the container. The container 31 may be held closed by glue tape 32 or any other suitable means.

The wall 31:: of the container is provided with two slots 33, one of which is shown in detail in Fig. 10. These slots 33 are generally cross-shaped, having a wide portion extending parallel to thelong side wall 310 and two opposed narrow portions extending in opposite directions from the central portions of the slots.

Into the slots 33 there is. inserted a handle 34 folded as shown 'inFig. 9, from a blank illustrated in Fig. 9a. The handle blank 34 comprises a central panel 35 joined along its long edges to a pair of U-shapedleg panels 36. To the central portion of one of the U-shaped leg panels 36 are attached two additional panels 37 and 38. The panel 37 folds under the panel 35 to close the gap between the U-shaped leg panels, and thepanel 38 is adapted for attachment to the opposite leg panel 36, thereby forming a luggage type handle including a central bridge of a hollow square cross-section, in a manner well known in the art.

Each u-shaped leg panel 36 is provided at both its ends with a panel 39 having notches, shoulders and locking tabs generally similar to those provided in the panels 23 in Figssl to 3.'

The panels 39 are folded back along the outer sides of the legs ofthe U-shaped panels 36, the folds being inserted in the wide portions of. the slots 33. The resilience'of the paperboard at the folds of the panels 39 is then effective to move the respective necks into the narrow portions of the slots 33 as the handle moves inwardly of the container. The handle then takes up the position illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8, where the legs of the U-shaped members converge toward one another and at least at their lower ends are effective to back up and reinforce each other. what narrower than the top panel 35 to allow the com vergence of the side panels 36 when the handle is folded. Panel 38 is approximately as wide as the central portion of the U-shaped panel 36. The purpose of panel 38 is to prevent panel 37 from caving into the inside of the handle when the handle is folded.

Figs. 11 to 14 These figures illustrate the invention as applied to a closure for a shoebag. The bag is made from a blank shown in Fig. 11 and consisting of a bag portion 40 formed of kraft paper or the like and having closure members 41 and 42 glued to opposite ends. The bag may be folded along the crease lines 43, in a manner well known in the art, and has glued tabs. 44 sealable to hold the sides of the bag together. 41 and 42 are provided with flaps 45, 46, 47 and 48, which may be folded together in an interlocking manner as illustrated in Fig. 13. Flaps 45 and 47 are provided with slits 45a and 47a, each adjacent an interruption in the fold scores 45b and 47b which define the flaps 45 and 47. When the flaps are folded, as shown in Fig. 13, there are left two T-shaped slots 50 in the closure of the bag, and

the two T-shaped projections 49 extending upwardly from the sides of the bag. A handle similar in all respects to the handle 20 of Figs. 1 to 3, may then be inserted in the 'slots 50 just as the handle 20 is inserted in the slots 16 and 17 of Fig. 1.

Although the slots for receiving the handle ends have been shown and described as either T-shaped or crossshaped, other slot contours, for example, L-shaped, may be employed, as long as the slots have narrow and wide portions arranged to perform the respective functions of the narrow and wide portions in the slots disclosed herein.

While I have shown and described certain preferred embodiments of my invention, other modifications thereof will readily occur to those skilled in the art, and I there- Panel 37 (see Fig. 9a) is some-.

The end closure members fore intend my invention to be limited only by the appended claim.

I claim:

A handle for a container which is rectangular in cross section and has two spaced T-shaped slots with the stems of the T-shaped slots alined and extending toward one another and each slot having a wide portion and an adjacent narrow portion and said slots located adjacent the opposite edges of one side of said container, a pair of legs and a pair of panels, one for each said leg, one of said legs being receivable in each of said slots with the panel on each leg extending upwardly from the lower end of the leg and inwardly toward the other leg so that the legs projecting through said slots are reinforced by the adjacent sides of the container, said handle comprising legs narrower than said wide portion and wider than said narrow portion and panels substantially as wide as said legs, means resiliently connecting a panel to the lower end of each leg, said leg and corresponding panel being insertable through said wide portion with said panel extending upwardly from the lower end of said companion leg, said connecting means being elfective to bias the upper end of said panel away from said leg, said panel including a neck narrower than the narrow portion of the slot and movable into said narrow portion by the bias of said connecting means as said leg and panel are inserted through said wide portion, said panel having at least one shoulder below said neck and adapted to engage the inner side of the top of the container so that the weight of the container is supported on said shoulder and is transmitted through said panel and said connecting means to the lower end of the leg.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 889,230 Hoflman June 2, 1908 2,021,559 Lengsfield Nov. 19, 1935 2,250,010 Cohn July 22, 1941 2,434,630 Van Rosen Jan. 13, 1948 2,450,801 Huye Oct. 5, 1948 2,489,034 James Nov. 22, 1949 2,558,713 Williamson June 26, 1951 2,645,406 Robins July 14, 1953 

